11 Has anyone here used owner financing as a buyer rather than a seller? I'm considering purchasing a property this way and wondering about tax implications from the buyer's perspective.

One thing to keep in mind with owner financing is the imputed interest rules. If you're not charging adequate interest on the financed portion (currently around 5.5% for long-term AFR), the IRS may impute interest income to you and treat part of your principal payments as interest income taxable at ordinary rates rather than capital gains rates. Also, make sure your purchase agreement clearly states the allocation of the purchase price if there are any personal property items included (like appliances or furniture). The stepped-up basis only applies to the real property portion, so you want to make sure everything is properly documented for tax purposes. Given the complexity of installment sales with inherited property, I'd strongly recommend getting everything reviewed by a tax professional before finalizing the sale agreement. The tax implications can be significant if not structured properly.

Something similar happened to me in 2022. They ended up sending a letter asking for marriage certificate. Might wanna check your mail carefully next few weeks

Been through this exact same thing! Filed MFJ for the first time in 2022 and had the same pattern - my transcript updated with 570 while my husband's stayed N/A for weeks. Turns out they were just verifying our marriage status since it was our first joint return. The 570 eventually cleared after about 3 weeks and then his transcript updated shortly after. Just be patient, it's totally normal for first-time MFJ filers. The IRS likes to double-check everything when your filing status changes!

If you're just trying to avoid fees, another option is to pull the money rather than push it. Log into the destination bank account and set up the other account as an external account, then initiate the transfer from there. Many banks don't charge for this if you're pulling money in. When I was funding my down payment, I linked my accounts this way and moved about $45k without any fees at all. Just took about 3 business days to process.

I've been through this exact situation multiple times and learned some hard lessons. Here's what I wish I'd known: First, don't use friends as intermediaries - it WILL create tax headaches for them even if no actual taxes are owed. The 1099-K reporting threshold means they'll get paperwork they have to deal with. Instead, try these alternatives in order: 1. External account linking (pull from destination bank) - usually free 2. ACH transfer - slower but typically no fees 3. Cashier's check to yourself - small fee but no reporting issues 4. Just pay the wire fee if it's a large amount I made the friend mistake once with a $12k transfer and my buddy ended up having to file extra paperwork and keep documentation for years. The $25 wire fee would have been so much simpler. Also, keep detailed records of ANY large transfers between your accounts - source, destination, dates, amounts. Even though it's your money, large movements can trigger reviews, and having clean documentation makes everything easier if questions come up later. The key is thinking beyond just avoiding fees - you want to avoid creating unnecessary complications for yourself or others down the road.

The 1040 instructions for line 4a state "generally, you should enter the total amount of distributions from all your IRAs" so I think FreeTaxUSA might actually be right to add both? The exception cases in the instructions are super confusing tho.

I went through this exact scenario last year and can confirm TurboTax is handling it correctly. Only the conversion amount ($4,074) should go on line 4a, not the recharacterization amount. Here's what helped me understand it: think of a recharacterization as "undoing" the original contribution type. When you recharacterized from Roth to Traditional, it's as if you had originally contributed to the Traditional IRA. Then when you converted back to Roth, that's the only transaction that gets reported on line 4a. The statement TurboTax creates is crucial - it explains to the IRS why you have multiple 1099-R forms but only one amount on line 4a. Without it, your return would look like you're underreporting distributions. I was also worried about e-filing with the statement, but TurboTax handled it seamlessly. The IRS processed my return normally and I got my refund on schedule. Don't stress about it - you're doing it right!

Don't forget about self-employment taxes! That's the thing that surprised me most when I started reporting my side gig income. You're responsible for both halves of Social Security and Medicare taxes (around 15.3% total) on top of regular income tax. I recommend setting aside at least 25-30% of what you earn for taxes depending on your tax bracket. Also look into making quarterly estimated tax payments if your tax liability will be over $1000 for the year. Much better than getting hit with a huge bill and potential penalties at tax time.

Just wanted to add that if your total self-employment income is less than $400 for the year, you don't have to pay self-employment tax on it. You still need to report it as income for income tax purposes though. Also, if you're doing photography, make sure you're keeping track of all your equipment purchases, editing software subscriptions, props, travel to shoots, etc. Those are all legitimate business expenses that will reduce your taxable income.